Drone World

Monthly Bulletin

DECEMBER 2025:
This bulletin covers developments in Europe and Scandinavia, compiled and analysed from open-source material. It provides a concise overview of military and civilian drone-related events observed throughout the month. Published by ESTA:

Military Domain

Topic: Norway published a defence-sector “Drone Strategy” (1 December 2025) [1]
Expanded content: Norway’s Government (via the defence sector) presented a dedicated Drone Strategy for the defence sector that treats UAS and counter-UAS as a combined capability area. The strategy frames drones and protection against drones as part of defence readiness and capability development—i.e., not an experimental niche, but something to be built systematically (capability, procurement, competence, and industrial base).

Topic: EU “Drone Wall” and similar flagship C-UAS initiatives face political/governance friction (15 December 2025) [2]
Expanded content: Reuters reported that several proposed EU-level “flagship” defence initiatives—incl. the counter-drone concept often referred to as a “drone wall”—risk slowing down due to institutional and member-state disagreements over ownership, governance, and funding. Analytical implication (not a direct quote): in practice this can drive uneven adoption timelines and fragmented procurement pathways across states.

Topic: Netherlands ordered Rheinmetall Skyranger 30 systems (12 December 2025) [3]
Expanded content: Rheinmetall announced a major Dutch order for Skyranger 30 as a mobile air-defence capability, explicitly positioned to address low-altitude threats including drones. The press release indicates a high-value, multi-year programme with deliveries planned later in the decade.

Topic: Croatia signed a five-year Counter-UAS framework agreement (18 December 2025) [4]
Expanded content: Croatia’s MoD signed a five-year framework agreement with Končar Digital to deliver counter-UAS capability via a multi-phase programme. The MoD statement specifies a total value of €125m (ex VAT) and describes procurement of four systems (two stationary for infrastructure protection and two vehicle-integrated mobile systems), with delivery scheduled for 2027.

Topic: DroneShield announced an A$49.6m contract routed to a European military end-customer (16 December 2025) [5]
Expanded content: DroneShield disclosed a A$49.6m contract awarded via a European reseller that is contractually required to supply a European military end-customer. The ASX statement describes the scope as handheld counter-drone systems plus accessories and software updates, with delivery/payment expected in Q1 2026.

Topic: Norway established temporary restricted areas linked to Exercise Cold Response 2026 (regulation adopted 12 December 2025) [6]
Expanded content: Luftfartstilsynet’s regulatory update notes a regulation adopted 12 Dec 2025 establishing multiple temporary restricted areas for Cold Response 2026, with the relevant restriction period stated as 7 March 2026 (09:00) to 19 March 2026 (12:00). For drone operators, the operational takeaway is straightforward: military exercises can produce binding airspace constraints that must be handled through disciplined pre-flight planning and airspace compliance.

Civil Domain

Topic: Norway – flydrone.no approaches 5 years; renewal of early competence certificates highlighted (4 December 2025) [7]
Expanded content: Luftfartstilsynet reminds operators that flydrone.no launched 1 January 2021, and that the earliest competence certificates are reaching the end of their 5-year validity around 1 January 2026, meaning renewal becomes a real compliance task—not a one-time checkbox.

Topic: Sweden – sanctions tighten; flying without “drönarkort” becomes punishable (announced 4 December 2025; effective 1 January 2026) [8]
Expanded content: Transportstyrelsen communicated that from 1 January 2026, it becomes punishable to fly drones 250 g or more without the required drönarkort, with penalties such as day-fines (and potentially higher legal consequences depending on the situation). This signals a clear enforcement trend: scaling drone operations brings more explicit sanctioning mechanisms.

Topic: UK CAA – call for users to learn new rules before 1 January 2026 (29 December 2025) [9]
Expanded content: The UK CAA urged both new and existing users to understand rule changes effective 1 January 2026, including a change where a Flyer ID becomes required for drones over 100 g (previously 250 g), which the CAA noted could impact a large number of users. Training organisations and professional operators typically need to update materials/SOPs when thresholds like this change.

Topic: Norway – temporary drone restriction over Nova Spektrum, Lillestrøm (notice 16 December 2025; legal basis 11 December 2025) [10]
Expanded content: Luftfartstilsynet published a notice establishing a temporary restriction over Nova Spektrum for 7 January 2026 (06:00–19:00 local time), with specified exemptions (e.g., police/EMS) and coordination via NOTAM/application mechanisms.
Note (your observation is correct): the page URL contains “7. januar 2025,” while the text clearly refers to 7 January 2026—this appears to be a website slug/naming error rather than an operational-date error.

Topic: EASA – EPAS 2026 published (18–19 December 2025) [11]
Expanded content: EASA published EPAS 2026, including the landing page and the downloadable volume(s). EPAS is operationally relevant because it signals EASA’s prioritised safety actions and themes—often the earliest indicator of where guidance and regulatory attention will concentrate.

Topic: EASA – “Easy Access Rules for Information Security” revised (5 December 2025) [12]
Expanded content: EASA released a December 2025 revision of its Easy Access Rules package for Information Security. Even when not UAS-specific, this area increasingly affects UAS organisations because information security expectations influence how operators manage C2 links, operational data, supplier dependencies, and safety-critical digital systems.

Detailed Takeaways 

Military Operators

  • Drones + counter-drones are now treated as a single capability problem, not separate niches. Norway’s defence-sector drone strategy frames UAS and C-UAS as core readiness and capability development.
  • C-UAS is being absorbed into mainstream SHORAD procurement and multi-year delivery plans. The Netherlands’ Skyranger 30 order is a clear “institutionalisation” signal.
  • Programme-based C-UAS acquisition is replacing one-off purchases. Croatia’s multi-year framework approach reinforces this shift.
  • Governance friction can slow EU “flagship” initiatives, so national pathways will still dominate near-term capability rollout.
  • Exercises translate into real airspace constraints—treat them as recurring operational risk, not an exception. Norway’s Cold Response 2026 restrictions are a practical planning reminder.

Civil Regulators / Operators

  • Compliance is becoming lifecycle-based, not “one-and-done.” Norway is explicitly highlighting renewal pressure for early competence certificates tied to flydrone.no.
  • Enforcement leverage is tightening as volume grows. Sweden’s strengthened sanctions make “flying without drönarkort” punishable (from 1 January 2026).
  • Rule changes drive immediate training/SOP updates. The UK CAA explicitly urged users to learn new rules before 1 January 2026.
  • Temporary restrictions for events are operationally significant—verify against NOTAM and the legal basis, not just URLs/slugs. The Nova Spektrum (Lillestrøm) restriction illustrates this well.
  • EASA’s “system safety + organisational robustness” direction remains strong. EPAS 2026 signals priorities, while the Information Security Easy Access Rules revision reinforces cybersecurity expectations that indirectly shape UAS ecosystems (C2, data handling, vendor dependencies). Top of Form

References (Open Access)

[1] Norway – “Dronestrategi for forsvarssektoren” (Government/defence sector strategy, 1 Dec 2025).

[2] Reuters – “European drone wall, other ‘flagship’ defence projects at risk in EU power struggle” (15 Dec 2025).

[3] Rheinmetall – “Rheinmetall to supply Skyranger 30 to the Netherlands” (Press release, 12 Dec 2025).

[4] Croatia MoD (MORH) – Framework agreement with Končar Digital (C-UAS) (18 Dec 2025).

[5] DroneShield – ASX announcement: A$49.6m European military contract (16 Dec 2025).

[6] Luftfartstilsynet – Regulatory update: temporary restricted areas for Cold Response 2026 (regulation adopted 12 Dec 2025; restriction period stated for March 2026).

[7] Luftfartstilsynet – “Flydrone fyller 5 år …” / competence certificate renewal reminder (4 Dec 2025).

[8] Transportstyrelsen – “Nu skärps reglerna för drönare” (announced 4 Dec 2025; effective 1 Jan 2026).

[9] UK CAA – “Regulator calls on … drone users to learn new rules …” (29 Dec 2025; rules effective 1 Jan 2026).

[10] Luftfartstilsynet – Temporary restriction over Nova Spektrum, Lillestrøm (notice 16 Dec 2025; legal basis adopted 11 Dec 2025).

[11] EASA – EPAS 2026 publication page / downloads (18–19 Dec 2025).

[12] EASA – Easy Access Rules for Information Security (revision from Dec 2025) (posted 5 Dec 2025).

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